This appeal was supported today by the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mr. Robert Glasser: “The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami marked a turning point in political commitment to tsunami early warning systems following the deaths of 230,000 people. 

“There is no doubt that the death toll from that rare but inevitable event would have been reduced considerably if today’s Indian Ocean tsunami warning system had been in place then. There are now also systems in place in the Caribbean and in the NEAM region and I encourage all nations to make full use of the systems and to be tsunami ready. In the long run this will save lives and reduce economic losses in regions where the risk remains acute even if there is a long interval between tsunamis.” 

Since the year 2000, more than 11 million people have been affected by tsunamis and these have resulted in some 250,000 deaths with the highest death tolls in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Japan, India and Thailand.

Date:

3 Nov 2017

Sources:

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)